Not Tomorrow
by In.The.DiNozzone
Summary: A short little thing in which Jen and Gibbs discuss not having kids tomorrow. While watching a family and their friends in a park on a colorful and cold autumn day. While drinking tea and coffee. Fluffy, sort of. Lines of establishment are unclear, but it is Jibbs none the less. I MIGHT do more with it, I might not. So for now, consider it one-shot. Inspired by tea.


_Disclaimer: Guess what. I still own nothing but my name :) oh- and a tin of pumpkin tea._

_Just a short little thing I wrote because I was drinking pumpkin spice tea and thinking about Jibbs..._

_in which they discuss the idea of children while they watch a family and friends in a park and she drinks pumpkin spice tea._

* * *

Jenny couldn't decide how she felt about autumn. On one hand, it was filled with beautiful colors, and it brought one the sweater weather, but on the other, it made her painfully nostalgic for some reason. If she had to pick her favorite thing about the season, it would be the flavors of everything in this season.

She tied her red jacket a little tighter, smoothing it over the backs of her thighs as she settled down on a bench. For some reason unknown to her, Jethro had _insisted_ she come outside with him for a drink. It was mid-September and surprisingly cool outside, but it wasn't often he ever actually insisted she do something with him—especially in the middle of a work day. Break or not, it was strange. But not unwelcome. She watched him patiently while he stood by the coffee cart, and she tucked her hands deeper into her pockets. There was a mild breeze, and even with her hair down it was chilling.

She tilted her head up when she saw him walking her with two drinks in his hand, narrowly avoiding a child that ran past him in haste to get to someone. She bit back a laugh at his mildly annoyed expression, which was gone as soon as it appeared when he realized it had only been a young child. She held out her hands gratefully for the lidded paper cup that he offered in her direction and she noted the little string and paper hanging tucked from under the lid. It was surprisingly hot, and in moments the scent of warm spice flooded her senses. "Jethro, why are we out here?" She asked, "It's cold. If you wanted to be alone with me, I _do_ have an office you know." She cradled the hot cup in her lap, relaxing as her hands warmed.

He settled on the bench next to her, sipping his coffee as he listened to her complaint. He was watching the kid he had almost tripped on, but he glanced at her when she offered for them to be alone in her office. "It's nice out." He answered shortly. It was not _that_ cold out, and he knew her complaints would stop once she actually started drinking the tea that had made him bring her all the way out here in the first place. He looked at her, then down at the tea. "Drink it." He met her eyes again, "If it's that bad I can warm you up in your _office _after." He quipped, turning back to watch the others in the small park area. He hardly reacted when his remark earned him no less than a swat on the arm.

"That isn't what I meant, Jethro." She hissed, sipping at her hot tea to try and hide the pink that had lightened her cheeks at his jest. She paused when she tasted the drink, and suddenly the nostalgia that had been nagging at her all day intensified. She swallowed, staring at the plain cup for a few long moments. "You remembered." She finally said quietly, looking over at him. He was not, however, looking at her. He was watching that child again.

"Mmhm." Came his annoyingly simple reply. He figured that a gentle reminder of the past would make her a little less uptight. He leaned forward slightly, resting his arms against his legs. The kid couldn't have been more than seven or eight, and he had run straight to a tall man with jet black, excited as though they were being reunited. He narrowed his eyes slightly at the man as the child babbled at him in a rush about something that he was feigning interest in so well that to a child it probably seemed like real interest. He was familiar. There didn't seem to be any physical relation between the two, so Gibbs only assumed it was some sort of family friend.

"Jethro?" Jenny finally broke the silence after a few sips from her drink. "Do you know them?" She asked, watching as another couple went to the child and the man he was speaking to. Her gaze fell on the woman standing next to him and she smiled a little. She seemed to be observing the area, but in a more casual way, as though letting her companion have a moment with the apparently familiar child. It wasn't until the other couple reached them that she let go of the man and began to interact.

He shrugged, taking a drink from his coffee. "Nope." He answered honestly. He glanced between the four adults, smiling a little when the child became distracted by the stroller that the other couple had. It was obvious that these people were in fact his parents. "You ever regret it?" He asked, glancing at her briefly before he set his eyes on the blond woman behind the stroller.

"What? Coming out here so you could people watch while I freeze my ass off? Yes." She informed him, irritated that he had asked her out here and was practically ignoring him to watch these strangers.

Her response drew a short laugh from him. "Meant kids." He murmured, taking another drink and savoring it for a moment as he watched the dark haired, almost exotic looking female lean down to speak with the child near but not in the stroller.

Jen froze, looking over at him. She had never, ever heard him say such a thing, barring a recent case with a young child that had drawn the same question from her toward him. She watched the woman with dark hair pick up the smallest child from the stroller and move toward the blond woman, and she seriously thought about his question. "No. Yes."

He sat up and looked over at her when she gave him the most indecisive answer he had heard from her mouth about anything. "Well which is it? Yes or no?"

"Both." She decided finally with a short nod, taking another sip of the spicy tea. "_Sometimes_ I wonder. But I just don't have the time. Never have the time."

He leaned forward again, looking away from her and back to the family and their friends. "Would you make the time if it was unexpected?"

This question also caught her off guard and she fully turned to look at him. "What are you implying?" She accused, sounding suddenly offended.

Her harsh reaction got his attention and he turned to face her. "Wasn't implying anything." He smirked at her expression that was caught somewhere between irritated and furious by his sudden interrogation that had taken and incredibly personal turn somewhere.

"Then why are you asking?" She relaxed slightly, drawing the warm cup a little closer to her. These questions were making her uncomfortable.

He nodded toward the people they had been watching, and looked over at her when he swore he saw her shiver. He moved over on the bench, leaning back against it but staying close enough that she would probably be able to leech his body heat, should she feel the need. "Curious. You asked me first."

She looked down at her drink, sitting still when she felt him move closer. She relaxed a bit more when she could feel the warmth of his leg against hers. "Fine. Then it's my turn." She decided, looking up at the family again. She noted how the woman with dark hair kept touching her abdomen through her coat as she grinned and excitedly explained something to the blond woman, which only made the tall and particularly handsome man obtain the most proud and almost arrogant smile. "What would you do if it had been an offer?" Without looking at him, she could feel his eyes on her.

"You change your mind?" He pressed.

"Well, I'm not saying tomorrow." She smiled when for the briefest moment that dark haired woman met her gaze. She politely looked away and turned her attention back to the man she considered her … part time lover. "But maybe." She took a longer drink from her rapidly cooling tea. It was unusual how she recalled a memory similar to this, only made stronger by the taste of the seasonal tea she was drinking. "I feel like we've had a conversation like this before."

"Tea any good?" He asked, eying the cup in her hands.

"We have had this conversation before." She realized, sitting up and looking at him. "Right here." She looked down at her tea. "We were here for two weeks between missions and you brought me here. And you bought me pumpkin spice tea that time, too."

He watched her patiently. "Your answer changed." He pointed out. The first time they had shared words like this, her answer had been a flat out, absolute solid no. Now, she seemed to be on the fence about it.

"I have a job to do." She said vaguely, leaning back against the bench but slightly closer to him. Their conversation paused as the friends with the children passed them.

"So did I." He murmured behind his coffee, almost resentfully.

She looked at him, narrowing her eyes as she tried to decipher the tone of his statement. It didn't sound like he meant their work in Europe.

"If you want somethin', you make time for it."

"Maybe you're right." She decided, taking another drink from her tea and sitting up straight. "But it is not going to happen tomorrow."

He shrugged, "Got a whole weekend coming up." He smirked, reaching over to lightly tug a lock of her long red hair.

She scoffed and jammed her elbow into his ribs, "You're only in it for the fun part, it's no wonder _you _keep bringing it up." She rolled her eyes. "You're not the one who has to suffer for nine months."

He shrugged and sat up as well, leaning forward on the bench and staring at the top of his cup. He glanced over at the family who had walked a fair distance. "Worth it, either way." He said quietly.

She sensed there was a deeper meaning to his words, but something about the way he said it made her not want to ask. She wasn't sure she wanted to get that deep. There were some things that she felt she was better off not knowing, just like there were some things he was better off not knowing about her- although she wondered just for a moment if it would be easier to not have to keep a secret from him. She had not kept much from him, but there was that one thing. She wasn't done working yet. "Maybe I'll be ready when there are no more secrets on the table."

He looked over at her and stood up, holding out his hand to help her up. When she stood, he met her gaze and held it. "Not tomorrow." He decided.

"Got a whole weekend coming up." She reminded him smoothly, finishing her tea and releasing his hand.

He snorted and put his hand on her back, leading her back in the direction of their work. The one thing he felt often kept them apart.

* * *

_A/N: FRIEND POINTS FOR WHOMEVER GUESSES WHO THE FAMILY/KIDS/COUPLE ARE! While they were random to and nameless in the story, they are actually somebodies!_


End file.
